How Deep is the Ocean
by youronlydoll
Summary: When Evelyn Hartley steps aboard the Venture, she knows exactly what she wants from it - escape. But, unknown to her, a large scale search party is scanning the globe for her. For how long can she keep both herself and her true identity hidden? Jimmy/OC
1. One

**So, here it is. My King Kong fanfic! A bit of an introduction from me here, just to outline a few things. First of all, though this takes place a few years after the movie is set, its actually an AU. Kong never happened, Hayes is alive, as is Lumpy, Choy and all the rest.**

**I know that there are tons of these types of stories out there, where a girl joins the Venture and her and Jimmy fall in love, etc, etc, but as I was reading them, though I don't mean to criticise, I grew frustrated because most of them seem to be rather unrealistic. Therefore, I got to thinking about it and the result was this story!**

**A quick note on the title, as well. The story is named after the song 'How deep is the ocean' by Irving Berlin. It was published in 1932 and has been performed by many artists, including Judy Garland, Etta James and Frank Sinartra. My favourite version is sung by Ella Fitzgerald and its definitely worth a listen.**

**Thank you and I hope you enjoy reading it :)**

* * *

><p><em>How much do I love you?<em>

_I'll tell you no lie._

_How deep is the ocean?_

_How high is the sky?_

One

Captain Englehorn grunted as he set down his pint glass. Running his hand through his hair, he scanned the newspaper in front of him once more.

"More money than sense," he muttered to himself, a slight German accent lacing his words.

The large man beside him shifted in his seat. Hayes was getting restless, the Captain noted. They all were. It was time to set sail again. Englehorn was getting tired of the city and its meaningless trivialities. It was too rich, too fast and too greedy for his liking, but the sea, now that was a different story. As with any captain or experienced seaman, he was most comfortable when on water. Preferably a vast expanse of open water, where no land could be sighted from any direction, where the only sounds to be heard were the shouts of men, the lapping of the waves on the side of the boat and the gentle chugging of steam like a steady heartbeat. Life was simple there. There was no politics to consider; no backhand transactions, unjust exchanges or corrupt businessmen to deal with. Just each man doing what he is meant to do, just doing his job, living off nothing but his wits and the strength of his arm. Nothing to consider but the constant need to keep moving forward.

"You read this?" He asked Hayes, tapping the headline that read 'Suspected kidnap of daughter of top businessman' with his index finger.

"Poor girl," Hayes commented.

"Played like a pawn on a chessboard," Englehorn continued, shaking his head in dismay. "Got to get out of this city."

He stood, motioning to Hayes that they were to leave, before draining the last of his glass and shaking on his jacket. They exited the public house and were immediately met by the cold night air. Neither man seemed fazed by it however, thanks to years battling the worst weather Mother Nature could throw at them. A Manhattan winter meant nothing to them now.

They strolled along the road until they reached the docklands, where their ship was anchored. They had been ported for nearly two months now, despite the fact that they had been ready to leave since week one. Though they had every advantage, given the size of the ship, there was just simply not enough work out there to keep every ship in New York busy, not while they were in the midst of a depression. Besides, there were plenty of other, newer ships out there that would be anyones first choice - the Venture was growing old, it needed a lot of work done and many things needed replacing. Of course, they were used to dry patches every now and again - sometimes they even welcomed them, for those who had other lives onshore they were a welcome break, a time for them to visit families or to just recover a little strength after months at sea, or even to blow their earnings on beer and good food - but this one worried the Captain.

Things were getting rather dire now. If they did not get work soon then he did not know what might happen. Perhaps the ship would have to be sold or taken to the scrap yard for it was surely on its last legs now, at the very least he would have to let some of the crew go. Though, who would be deemed redundant, he did not know. Growling under his breath at the frustration of it all, he pushed the thought from his mind and concentrated on discussing with Hayes how they were to find work.

"We must find something before the week is out, Hayes," he said, his voice low and terse. "Or else we'll all be out on our ear."

Hayes sighed heavily in response to the statement, knowing how true it was and how close it was to actually happening. However, the Captain had an unexpected attitude towards the situation tonight. Hayes had already told the crew to be on the look out for any prospective work and, although they had heard of nothing yet, Englehorn had a good feeling about tonight. There was something about life at sea that gave simple men like him the gift of foresight, partially at least. Perhaps it was all those years of watching the skies, of sensing the subtle changes in the wind and of the movements of the waves, of piecing together all the signs and signals that give away the arrival of a storm. Perhaps it had given him a sixth sense. In any case, the knot in the pit of his stomach had eased somewhat and for once; he did not dread the discussions to come.

* * *

><p>Leonard Hartley, of Hartley and Denton Ltd, was an extremely rich man. His business was booming, growing day by day and bringing in cash by the millions. Some might consider him lucky to be where he was, living a life of luxury whilst others roamed the streets with no food and no shelter as a result of the Depression. But to him, it was not luck that bought him to his current position. It was hard work. A lifetimes worth of toil on his fathers behalf, rising up through the ranks, riding on the aftershocks of the Great War and establishing himself as an ambitious, well-educated and extremely powerful man in those troubled years. And he himself had continued the tradition. His Father had begun his training as soon as he could stand and by the time he reached the age of sixteen he was already immersed in the world of industry and business. He worked hard, learning the ins and outs of the trading world and how to control it, so that he might make his Father proud one day. He was quick-witted and the brain for ripe for business. By the time he was eighteen he was itching to leave school and join his Father and his business partner, Frederick Denton, in the running of the family business, an ever growing manufacturing company that had the potential to go global. Already with two factories in the state of New York, one in England and another opening in Germany, the company employed more than thirty industrial steamboats for the transport of materials and products and two thousand men to man the boats and work the factories.<p>

He had married Grace Denton, Frederick's daughter, at the tender age of twenty one. She had given him two children - a boy and a girl. Then, Hartley's Father died after thirteen years of working in partnership with his son and his oldest friend. Five years after that Denton followed and, with no heir, left Hartley to manage the business by himself. Four years on and the company was thriving under his careful watch. Since Hartley had joined the corporation, the business had almost doubled in size; they had truly gone international, dominating the manufacturing scene in both the United States and England and with a steady hold over the market in most of Europe. The company dabbled in many industries - producing rayon and nylon, electronics and chemical products. And now, Leonard had hit the jackpot. Things were changing in America; there were new patterns in consumerism, new demands from the customers. Not only were they demanding different things, but they were demanding more. And Leonard was determined to be the one to give it to them. He was still fairly young and knew how to move with the times, adapting his products to suit whatever was the latest innovation or fad at the time.

It was nearing the end of the decade and the supermarkets were where the big bucks were. With nearly five thousand nationwide, Leonard had big plans. He was about to open three new factories, dedicated to producing canned goods and processed foods. That's what the people wanted - quick, easy and cheap. Both for him and for them. He was growing an empire - just like his Father had done for him, now he was doing for his son.

But there was a problem. To get power, power must be taken from others and so he had on many occasion over the years. Sacrifices had to be made of course, but by no means did he regret his actions. But he had enemies as a result, as did every powerful man in the world. And now, his new venture was riling them even more. He had trampled on hundreds of businesses over the years, crushed hundreds of dreams - indirectly of course, it was a necessary and inevitable consequence of business, survival of the fittest as they said - taken away jobs and destroyed lives, left families in destitution. This new plan did so more than ever. In previous times, Hartley knew exactly how to handle this; he had a knack for manipulating people, charming them and of brushing over the bad things. But not this time. A problem had arisen. His daughter had been kidnapped.

It had been two weeks since they'd last seen her and now the papers had gone wind of it all. He'd wanted to keep it hushed up, he would pay the ransom without a seconds hesitation and his daughter would be back with them no harm done. He'd heard stories of this kind of thing happening before, rich businessmen exploited and manipulated for money by their competitors. He swore he would never be victim to it. He'd learned long ago never to have anything in his life that he gave any particular value to. He had not married out of love, first of all, it was yet another transaction, another contract if you will, there was not the time for love in business. And though he did not want to seem heartless, he barely saw the girl in question, nor any of his family, save for his son. But he did not think his company could handle the stress of it all, the scandal and the negative press. The people did not need to know that he had enemies, especially not any that were justified in their endeavours.

But no such ransom had been demanded. They had waited and waited, but nothing came. Hartley had every man on the job, he'd hired every private detective in the city and the entire New York police force were dedicated to finding her - or at least, to finding who had taken her first. Though Hartley knew his enemies well enough, he could not think of any who would have the means, let alone the guts to perform such a stunt. And so far, to add to his worries, they had found nothing.

* * *

><p>Evelyn Rose Hartley.<p>

It was sewed to the inside of her jacket. Why, she did not know. She rarely left the confines of her home, so never even got the _opportunity_ to loose anything. But there it was, plain as day in red thread, the letters curling and swirling around themselves forming the shape of her name.

She detested her name. Evelyn Rose was nice enough, it was her Grandmother's name after all, but Hartley, she did not like. It did not seem right seeing it next to her name. It did not belong there, it belonged next to her Mother's maiden name. Hartley and Denton. Of Hartley and Denton Ltd. That was where it should be. She did not want to be associated with that name anymore and everything that it stood for. She picked at the threads violently. Well, as violently as you could be when dealing with something so intricate. Her teeth were gritted and her hands shaking with irritation.

She sat on the edge of the dock, bare feet dangling off the side but not quite reaching the water, trouser legs rolled up exposing pale skin. The thin material of her shirt did nothing to shield her from the winter's cold. A shiver ran through her as she picked the remaining threads off. It was an old jacket, yet it still fit. She picked it because it was her plainest one, of a dark navy with no trace of pattern or embroidery on it. She needed to not be noticed.

When she was done, she pulled on the jacket and slipped on her boots, her trouser legs falling once more around her ankles. She picked up a swift pace and walked along the length of the dock. There were ships of all sizes moored next to her, from small fishing boats to large cruise liners. But there was only one ship that Evelyn was interested in. It was a large steam boat, probably used for industrial purposes, if her Father's business had taught her anything. The SS Venture, it was named. It was docked but half way down port and had been for at the very least a month. That was when she first noticed it there and it had not moved since. She had been watching it for some time you see. After a number of days of sitting at the docklands, walking along past the ships and watching as the men went about their daily work, she had finally picked this one. She had seen ship after ship come and go and knew exactly what kind she should like. The SS Venture fitted the bill perfectly.

She had to get away, you see. It was all very well leaving and travelling across the country, finding menial work here and there, but there was only so far she could go on foot before her Father, well not him personally, but her Father's men, caught up with her. He had all the money and power in the world at his mercy, to do with how he willed, but all Evelyn had was a spare change of clothes, a few personal trinkets and a loaf of bread. And after they were gone, only stubbornness and determination. For sure, she would put up a fight, but he was Leonard Hartley, the most powerful businessman in New York, in the United States practically, and who was she? A nineteen year old girl with an idea and a whole lot of courage.

People might wonder why one such as her should wish to leave her life behind her for one that is vastly unknown to her and would no doubt involve years of toil and hard work. To everyone else, Evelyn Hartley had everything. And in a certain respect, they would be right in saying that. Whatever she liked, she got. And this pleased her for many years. But the novelty began to wear off as soon as she had the savvy to realise that everything her Father gave her was meaningless. All the dresses and shoes and hats and gloves, they were all just replacements. Replacements for his love and his care, well, even just for his company, for he was never around to see her wear any of it. In fact, she might even take it one step further and say that he gave it all just to placate her. To keep her distracted and out of the way. If she was busy trying to decide what outfit to wear, which hat matched which pair of shoes, then perhaps she would not notice that she never saw her Father, or her Mother for that matter, nor had any kind of relationship with either of the two, even when she did see them.

Her Father did the same with her Mother. Except, Grace Hartley was happy with that. For a while, Evelyn felt sorry for her Mother. It had always been clear to her, even from a young age, that their marriage was not based on love. And so she pitied her Mother, for being stuck in a loveless marriage, something that Evelyn could never stand for. But then, as she grew older, she realised that her Mother was no better. Evelyn had forgotten that her Mother had grown up in the exact same surroundings as her Father - and with a mind for business. It was a business of another sort - the business of the heart - where contracts were still made and the most advantageous moves still carried out. Grace Hartley _liked_ the way things were. And no, she had not just gotten used to it all, it was how she had wanted things from the start. It had been nothing but a business transaction for her, as much as it had been for Evelyn's Father. It was the only thing that they had in common.

And so, all pity for her Mother vanished. What replaced it was anger. She was angry that her Mother was no different from her Father, a man that she deemed to be heartless and cruel. She was angry that she sat by and watched as her Father became more and more of a distant figure in her life. She was angry that she, too, did the same without a second thought. She was angry that she could not think of anything more important than herself and the preservation of the family name. Evelyn Hartley had a lot of anger inside of her. Anger that she had tried very hard to conceal. So far, she had succeeded, but such strong emotions always find an outlet. Her decision to leave home, though she did not know it, was Evelyn's response to it all.

She had become tired of it all, tired of pretending to be interested in silk dresses and lace gloves and fur coats, of being prim and proper. She was meant to be a debutante, she had come out a year ago. And it had only gotten worse. Before she was eighteen, she had only had to satisfy a few people - her Mother, her Father, if and when she saw him, and a few other family members who came to visit. But now that she was out in society, it was a completely different story. Now she had to _represent the family_. She had to attend balls and dinners and be polite, hold her cutlery properly and always behave with dignity. She was not to leave the house without a hat and gloves, for it was most frowned upon by her Grandmother. She was bored of dressing in her finest clothes for dinner for only her Mother and brother to see and of changing her clothes countless times a day all so she show off just how rich the Hartleys were. It all just seemed so pointless. She was the only daughter of the richest man in New York, therefore, rather a lot was expected of her and by rather a lot of people, but she had not the inclination to appease them.

So, she had to leave the country. She had to go overseas and what better way than to hitch a ride on a steamboat headed some great, exotic country. She was not quite sure what she could offer them, somehow she envisioned that expert piano playing, near perfect pitch and embroidery were not the most valuable skills aboard a vessel such as the Venture, but Goddammit, she would try.

* * *

><p>Still nothing.<p>

Captain Englehorn was beginning to think he was wrong about this evening. Perhaps his sixth sense had failed him this time. Most of the crew were back on the ship and no one had come up with anything of any worth. There were a few businesses in want of transportation of cargo, there always were, but they were small jobs; the Venture was too large for any of these jobs, it would be inefficient for such a ship to take them. Such a waste of resources and time. Englehorn was near the point of despair now.

He was sat in the navigation room, Hayes beside him and Jimmy watching from the other side of the room, a few other crew members were present, coming and going between rooms every so often. Lumpy could be heard whistling from the galley, whilst the other members were busy maintaining the ship or were onshore, enjoying their extended time off, leaving the three of them to debate what to do.

Captain Englehorn sighed and held his head in his hand.

"Jimmy," he ordered, without looking up. "Get me that bottle of gin and a glass."

The young boy nodded and did as he was told. He had barely set the bottle on the table when Englehorn snatched it up and poured himself a generous glass. He winced slightly as the liquid slid down his throat. It did help to soothe that ever tightening knot in his stomach, however. Hayes then proceeded to sit down opposite the Captain and to do the same. Jimmy looked ready to join them too, but at the same time, seemed to be thinking against it, not being one who generally partook in heavy drinking. Instead, he reinstated himself in his usual position across the other side of the room, observing his two superiors.

Just then, there was a knock at the door. "Come," the Captain called.

The door opened to reveal Choy, mop in hand, still slightly dripping from whatever task he had been doing. "There is someone here who wishes to speak to you, Captain," the man said, his accent thick. He stood to one side and a young girl entered the room.

"Who are you, young lady?" Englehorn asked, knocking back another glass of gin, puzzled as to what business such a young creature had with him. The girl stepped forward, head held high with what seemed to be every ounce of courage she had. He applauded her determination, though still could not place who she was. The daughter of one of the crew? Perhaps. She had a familiar face, he might have seen her before, but he could not be sure. If she was a connected with someone on board, he would most likely have known who she was. They were a large crew, but they had remained the same company for years, as the Captain he would at least _recognise_ a family member, even if no name could be recalled.

But this girl, she was something else. She had an air about her that was not seen often around the Venture, only when they had people of great worth on board, like a rich businessman, not that it happened very often. She was not like the others on board, she had the innocence of one that has not known what it is to be hungry, to be exhausted, to have journeyed across thousands of miles of open water for months on end, against the wrath of the ocean and the force of the wind, for nothing but pittance for wages and a lukewarm meal. She was young, yes, but younger than her had endured the troubles that came with being poor. She had seen nothing of the hardships of this world, her hands were too soft and her resolve too strong. The world had not wearied her yet. Her clothes said it had, by their dishevelled and worn look, but her countenance said otherwise. She was an enigma, a walking contradiction. He probed her further, intrigued by her presence.

"What business do you have with the Venture?"

She took another step forward, taking a breath, so she stood but a little way from the Captain.

She flashed a smile. "Captain Englehorn, I am the answer to your prayers."


	2. Two

Two

"Captain Englehorn, I am the answer to your prayers."

Evelyn had to admit it, now that she was here, she felt more than a little intimidated.

She was unsure as to what she had expected. Perhaps just a cosy little room, with a roaring fire and a Captain's wheel looking out over the stern of the boat, maps lining the walls, marking well travelled routes, along with trinkets and souvenirs from all corners of the globe, wooden tables carved by the bare hands of the crew sporting all manner of seafaring gadgets. To be fair, she had little experience of the world outside of her own and much of her knowledge of ships came from journals of the great explorers. She guessed her imagination needed readjusting, at the moment it was a little too romantic. What she met with instead was a group of grimy men, huddled around a bottle of gin, looking weary and forlorn. They looked at her like they had never seen a woman on board their ship and, to be honest, they probably hadn't.

For a brief moment, Evelyn considered turning round and running straight out of there, proclaiming she'd made a mistake and got on the wrong ship. She'd run right back home and resume her role as a meek and obedient daughter. But no, the thought of her life back with her family made her think twice about doing that. She had to hold her ground. Never had she so easily been scared by someone, but then again she did not usually associate with such people as these, she was used to more..._refined_ company. But she could not stop now, she had come this far. It would look silly if she walked out now. She had an audience and everything, after all.

Captain Englehorn scoffed and rose from the table. "And how is that exactly, young lady?"

"You need work, do you not, Captain?" she replied. The Captain frowned as she did so, making her become aware of her words. She had to stop sounding so _posh_! There was silence for a moment, she pressed on. "Well?"

"Perhaps," the Captain said slowly, clearly trying to guess at her motives.

"Then I can get it for you," she said, proudly. "It will be worth your while, believe me."

"What makes you think we need the work?" The Captain inquired.

"I have a keen eye, Captain." He frowned at her words and she continued: "You have been moored here for a month, perhaps longer. But that is a long enough time for someone passing by to know that the barrel must be clean dry of work right now."

"Indeed," he answered sternly. He examined her with suspicion. "And why do you come to me with this? What do you want in return?"

"A job, a place aboard the ship. For one voyage only, if you like. I'll leave at the first place we dock, provided it is not this country."

"Nothing else?"

"Nothing at all, Captain."

"And what if I can't pay you?" Evelyn felt a pang of annoyance at this. She could have done with the money when she arrived at her destination. But then again, what did she expect?

"A place to sleep and a hot meal is all that I require."

The Captain glanced to a man seated at the table next to him at this point. They shared a look and the man, presumably his first mate, gave him a shrug in return. The young boy who stood behind them looked from one person to the other, clearly excited by the whole thing and eagerly anticipating his crew mate's next moves.

"Before I agree, I should like to know the details of this job, if you may," the Captain said, taking a seat at the table once more.

"I know a company in need of transportation." Drawing a hand into her pocket, Evelyn retrieved a slightly crumpled business card. She reached forward and set it on the table in front of the Captain. "Find Charles Downing and you'll find plenty of work."

"Charles Downing?" The Captain repeated, staring at the piece of paper before him.

"Yes, he works for Hartley and Denton, the manufacturing company. He organises the distribution of cargo." Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the first mates eyebrows raise a little.

"Hartley and Denton, eh? And how does someone like you have such connections?" Asked the Captain, apparently still rather wary of Evelyn. She cursed herself for not dropping her accent and speaking more plainly.

"A friend of a friend, I suppose." She was not about to say the true origin of her knowledge, of course. She kept her answer vague and offhand and the Captain did not question it, even if he did not believe her.

"Very well..." He eyed the card before him.

"So...do we have a deal?" Evelyn asked, eagerly.

The Captain rose and stood before her. "If we get the work, you may stay. We will take you as far as you need to go."

"You _will_ get the work, I can guarantee it." Evelyn could not hide her relief and happiness at his acceptance of her offer, for a moment she thought he might turn her away. She beamed. "When you speak to him, tell him John Hollis sent you. Do not mention that you got this from me."

Englehorn gave a swift nod and there was silence between them. "And your name?"

Evelyn paused for a moment. She had practiced this line a hundred times over, but here was the moment of truth.

"Katherine...Katherine Winters."

* * *

><p>"Do you believe her, Captain?" Jimmy asked, ever one to be plain, once the girl had left and the three were once more alone to consider the exchange that had just taken place.<p>

"I don't care who she is or what she says, as long as we get some work," he muttered gruffly. He fingered the business card in his hand, contemplating what to be done. In actuality, there was only one thing for it - he must find Charles Downing. The last ten minutes had been rather odd, he had to admit, and he was suspicious of this headstrong girl, but if it meant work, if it meant a wage and an escape from the city, then he had to take it. Or at least try. For the sake of the crew, if not for himself.

Whoever this girl was, she was not who she said she was, but he was not one to contemplate things for long. What did he care that she wished to leave the country? That she dressed like a vagrant but sounded like an aristocrat? That she had friends in high places but was barely out of childhood? That was not his business. Besides, it was not unusual to see a once wealthy person now out on the streets. So, he pushed it out of his mind. Work was his main priority.

"So we're gonna have a girl on board, are we, Captain?" asked Jimmy, interrupting his train of thought.

The Captain grunted into his glass and Hayes answered: "Guess so," with a shrug of his shoulders. "Crew's just gonna have to put up with it. 'S only for a month or so."

"Not had a lady on board in a long while..." said Jimmy, absentmindedly.

Englehorn stopped listening after a moment, becoming oblivious to their words as he played the previous scene over in his head again, just to be sure. Really, he did not have much of a choice.

"Hayes." The man's head looked up towards the Captain at the sound of his name. "Tomorrow, we find him."

The first mate gave a firm nod in reply. Englehorn rose swiftly then, tossing the business card down on the table with a flick of his wrist, and exited the room.

* * *

><p>The girl's story checked out. First thing the next day, Englehorn and Hayes sought out Charles Downing. He was not a hard man to find, or to bargain with. Being in the employment of such a large company that produced so much cargo that needed to be sent to so many destinations meant that he was always on the lookout for large ships to hire. It seemed they had hit the jackpot. The man seemed reluctant to speak with them at first, but when Hayes piped up and mentioned John Hollis, whoever that was, he instantly became more receptive. It seemed the girl really knew her stuff.<p>

Downing provided work for them alright and plenty of it. They were to transport some cargo from New York to London and then continue on to Hamburg to pick up some goods. Upon their return to New York, if they should want it, they would be assigned something more. Englehorn had always resisted working for big companies like this, they trampled over small businesses and local tradesmen and he always feared the same would happen to him if the SS Venture got involved. But desperate times called for desperate measures and sometimes prejudices and fears have to be set aside. Besides, they paid very generously. And the promise of constant work for the next few months could not be dismissed so easily, if at all.

So here they were, watching as Downing's men loaded crate after crate into the holding room. The crew could not be happier, they were all desperate to be on the sea once more, finding the city to be constricting after so much free time spent there. Within an hour the engines were running and the ship was ready to leave dock. This deal with the young girl seemed to be the best deal Englehorn had made in a long time. And the girl seemed pretty pleased with how things were panning out herself.

He had seen her briefly since their first meeting, only to confirm the deal and assign her to her post. If Englehorn was honest with himself, he had not the means, nor the inclination to let another person join the crew. Not only were their rations spread thinly enough already, but he could not think of any particular role that needed filling on the Venture at present. In the end, he had assigned her to Lumpy, to assist in the kitchens and with whatever jobs he and the other crew members needed doing. Englehorn supposed she would be much like Jimmy, flitting from one job to the next, depending on whatever needed doing at the time. Like him, she was young and agile; these traits alone gave the Captain reason enough to employ her. Still, he did not begrudge her presence. If anything, she should be their guest of honour, for it was thanks to her that they weren't still sitting in that dock. In any case, she was working for bed and board alone, it was not exactly much to spare, given the opportunity she had presented to him.

And besides, she had gained his respect. Even if she could do nothing else, then that would be enough for him to give her what she wanted.

* * *

><p>Many people thought Grace Hartley had a heart of stone. And in many ways, she did.<p>

Sitting at her dressing table, she let the rollers out of her hair and began to style it. As she did so, she let her mind wander. Given recent events, she'd been made to think over her life. She did not care much for reflection, but even she could not help where her mind travelled to.

She'd been married very young, to a man that she did not care much for, despite the fact that she had grown up with him. She supposed that just showed how truly detestable he was - that even as a child she had disliked him. But she knew the life that was set out ahead of her and if her Father had taught her one thing, it was to make the most of every situation. And she had. She'd seized the opportunity to marry Leonard Hartley in a heartbeat. Even at sixteen years old she knew the advantages it would bring her.

Though readily accepted into society, her family were not part of the aristocracy, neither were they one of the Old Families. They had not always been so wealthy or held in such high esteem. In fact, not so very long ago, they were rather ordinary folk. But the War had changed all that and the Depression after. Just like he had said, her Father had grabbed every opportunity he could and made a fortune in the previous decade. And, despite a dip, due to the Depression, he had truly made something of himself.

Hartley Senior had become her Father's business partner shortly after she was born. Leonard was already five years old by then and ever since, she had rarely seen the back of him. Well, that was until he took over the company by himself, since then he was never around. And frankly, she was glad of it. That was what she had planned for herself. She didn't want love and devotion, she didn't care for that sort of thing, and certainly not from Leonard.

Lamentably, she had made the mistake of having children. Though she had not wanted them, it was the unfortunate duty that came with being a wife. Grace did not want anyone to depend on her, but Leonard had wanted an heir. Just like his Father had passed the business onto him, he wanted a son to pass the business onto himself. Luckily, it only took two attempts. Anymore than Grace would have had to put a stop to it. Two children was more than enough for her liking. In fact, one was!

They stayed with the nanny mostly. Grace could not even summon the enthusiasm to nurse them herself. She could not be doing with it. She had hired a wet nurse, though they were not as popular anymore. She did not want to force herself on the babes if she was not willing to do it. It seemed the lesser evil to leave it to a doting wet nurse, hired purely for that purpose. But even as they grew older, as they developed their own personalities and little lives, Grace still wanted little to do with them.

George Hartley was the younger of the two, raised a straight-laced, uptight sort of boy, he was well on his way to becoming his Father and Grace did not like to be around him because of that. Leonard had made sure, from the moment he was born, that he was bought up to follow in his footsteps, as his Father had done for him. Heaven forbid if the boy should ever like to make his own destiny. But Grace was sure Leonard had stamped that out of him years ago, he was well past that now. In fact, now that he was nearly eighteen, he was practically itching to start working. In any case, George was Leonard's problem, she had nothing to do with him these days.

And as for Evelyn. Well, she was another matter entirely. If only mother and daughter had the same relationship as father and son. The reality was that Evelyn could not be anymore different to her Mother if she tried. Grace resented her for that. Why could she not be like other little girls? She saw her friends with their daughters, like miniature versions of themselves. Like little dolls, they could dress them up in the finest clothes and show them off to all of society. But Evelyn did not care for nice clothes or good company. In fact, Grace was not sure of what her interests were, but they certainly did not mirror her own. Other women were off choosing husbands for their daughters, inviting young men around for tea and throwing grand dinner parties, but not Grace. She had to sit by and watch as her daughter pursued other activities that were not fitting for a girl such as her, like reading and playing sports. Yes, Grace believed that a young lady should be well educated and in good health, but Evelyn always seemed to take things _too far_. She could not ever imagine that her daughter would find a man to put up with her long enough to hold a conversation, let alone long enough to marry her.

Saying that, Evelyn did get some attention. She was attractive enough for most young men to bypass her rather unusual personality and to at least consider her as being a potential wife. Grace supposed that was the only way that her daughter took after her, in her looks. She had her Father's dark hair, it was true, but her face mirrored Grace's almost exactly.

But now, Evelyn was gone. What a funny turn of events, Grace thought. She had not been expecting that to happen. But then Leonard had angered many people over the years, she supposed it was only a matter of time before someone exacted some form of revenge. Only, she didn't think it would ever be this..._extreme_. All the signs pointed to kidnap, that's what Leonard said - he'd told her of the open window, the smashed lamp and the stolen jewellery, no doubt taken for an added bonus. Plus, the fact that there were no clothes missing - she had clearly been taken right out of her bed. Plucked, like an apple from a tree. One of the servants said she heard raised voices. And another vouched that Evelyn had been nothing but herself that day and would never have left on her own accord. The girl would return anyway, Leonard had more than enough money to make sure of that.

Grace was not sure what to think of the whole thing. It was a mess, to say the least, one that her husband was failing to keep secret any longer. It had been front page news, for God's sake! She'd had countless visitors since then, people wishing to give their condolences, like the girl was already dead, and best wishes. Everybody kept asking how she was, if she was bearing up alright. And, though by the sounds of it she ought to have been distraught, she did not really feel much at all. It was not that she wished the girl was in danger, quite the contrary, she did not want the girl to come to any harm, for no one deserved that. But she hadn't exactly worried about her before, so why start now?

Scoffing at the thought of it all, she began to dress for the day. She briefly supposed that maybe that was why they called her heartless.

* * *

><p>Evelyn watched as ship pulled away from the dock. <em>Gone<em>, she thought. _I am gone now_.

Though she had left her home more than two weeks ago, she did not quite feel so secure wandering the streets of New York. Of course, she'd stayed well away of any areas where she might be recognised but one could never be too sure about these things. No doubt her Father would be looking for her already - well, the police perhaps, her Father never left the comfort of his office. In fact, she had caught a glimpse of a newspaper one day, she had made the headline. _Evelyn Hartley kidnapped_. She had snatched the thing up, scanning the page and taking in every word that it said. So, they thought her kidnapped? This had been a surprise, indeed.

It had never crossed her mind that they might think that she'd done anything else but runaway. But she supposed it looked better on her Father if she was kidnapped, much easier to explain. It would be scandalous for a daughter to run away from home. It was associated with eloping and illegitimate children. _If only things had been that interesting_, Evelyn thought.

Though this new development had worried her a little when she had first found out about it - a kidnapped girl would be searched for with far more fervour than a runaway - it really did not make much of a difference. They would be looking for her in either case. The newspaper had worried her also, but luckily there had been no pictures printed of her, only one of her Father who had refused to comment on the matter - well, none in that article anyway, she could not be sure of any others.

But now...now, she was well and truly gone. She felt sure that no one would guess where she had gone, or if they did suspect, that they would never be able to identify which ship she was residing on. And never would they be able to stop them, now that they had set sail. Once she reached London, she would be anonymous. She would be able to find a job and a place to stay and live in peace, on her own, for the rest of her life. Perhaps she would travel to the North, so she might make sure she was the furthest away from her Father as possible. He did, after all, have many contacts in London. Or perhaps, she might ask the Captain to drop her in Hamburg. Now that really was a long way from home...

She stood at the railings of the ship, watching as they grew further and further away from the mainland. To her right, she heard a cackle of laughter and the sound of footsteps coming her way, breaking her out of her train of thought. As she turned, a young couple rounded the corner, lead by Englehorn. The Captain did not look at her as he passed through to the cabins, but the couple stopped beside her.

"Who's this then?" The man inquired, eyeing her up and down, a smirk playing on his lips. The woman rolled her eyes and pushed him to one side.

"Go find the Captain, Bobby." She said angrily, a strong Southern accent entwining her words. "And take this with you!"

She flung her suitcase at him, hitting him square in the stomach as he turned to her. Straightening up, he frowned at her, muttering under his breath something about women being a pain in the…

The woman turned back to Evelyn, who had been watching the whole thing, feeling rather dumbstruck. She had never met anyone like them. The man was dressed smartly enough, though it was clear they had little money. But even so, his suit was well cut and seemingly freshly pressed, and his shoes had been shined to perfection. His hair was cut short and styled neatly, combed to one side and with not a hair out of place, as was his perfectly trimmed moustache. He was clearly a man who took pride in his appearance. The woman was the same. She looked rather glamorous, though Evelyn was sure that her Mother would strongly disapprove of her. Her make-up was strong, bright red lips and dark eyes, she'd pencilled in a beauty spot on her left cheek. She was rather pretty, with blonde curls poking out from under her hat and bright blue eyes. Her dress sense could only be described as garish. She wore what looked to be an evening dress under her coat, of red silk that reached just below the knee and wore rather a lot of beads around her neck. Composing herself after her little moment, she fixed her gaze on Evelyn.

"Hey, doll," she said with a wink. "What's your name?"

"Katherine," Evelyn replied.

"I'm Nancy," she said, shaking her hand vigorously. "Got any smokes?"

"No, sorry."

"What you doin' all dressed like that?" Nancy screwed up her face and eyed her clothes. Evelyn pressed herself closer to the railings in a failed attempt at hiding herself.

She chuckled. "Long story."

At that moment, the man poked his head round the entrance to the cabins. "You comin', Nance?"

"Sure thing, hun," she said before picking up her bag and joining the man. "See you around, doll."

She left, leaving Evelyn on her own once more. But before she had a chance to recover from what had just happened, a young boy rounded the corner. He stopped all of a sudden as he saw her.

"Oh, hello…" he said. "…Katherine," he added, somewhat nervously.

"And you are…?" Evelyn asked, holding out a hand and smiling broadly at him.

"Jimmy," the boy replied, taking her hand sheepishly.

"Nice to meet you, Jimmy."

He took his hand away quickly and shoved it in his pocket, looking at the ground shyly.

"Don't s'pose you know who they are? That man and woman, do you?" Evelyn probed.

"Oh, yeah. Friends of the Captain, I think. Needed a ride to England, like you." He motion to Evelyn as he said it with a wave of his hand. A silence descended between them. Evelyn struggled for something to say, but what could she say to a boy like him? What could they possibly have in common? She watched as Jimmy shifted his feet before her, not meeting her gaze. She began to feel rather awkward and she cleared her throat in an attempt to break the silence. But after a moment, Jimmy saved them both by mumbling: "Gotta go now."

And with that he was gone. Probably off to do some errand or something for the Captain. _What an odd boy_, Evelyn thought. He was about the same age as her, most likely a year or two older by the looks of it.

She had met plenty of boys over the past year of her age. They were all the same: charming, sophisticated, rich, spoilt, arrogant…she could go on and on! It was rare to find one who could actually hold an interesting conversation. It was always business with them all. She mostly spent her time ignoring them and wondering if they'd ever even had a childhood, or whether they'd just popped out of their Mother's womb holding an accounts ledger and wearing nothing but a leering smile. But that was another story.

Evelyn chuckled at the thought of the boy she'd just met, Jimmy. How different he was from them all! It was almost laughable. She wondered what they would all think of him, shy and quiet like a mouse.

In fact, in the last two days she'd met rather a lot of _different_ people. She was not used to people like them, it was true, but she was rather enjoying herself already, being in their company. They were so open, not caring what others thought of them and voicing their opinions whenever and wherever they saw fit. And they respected each other. The camaraderie between the crew members was wonderful to watch. Though she merely sat at the side and observed at the moment, Evelyn thought that hopefully, in time, she could become part of that. Already, she felt comfortable here. Already, she had begun to forget the restrictions of her past life. It was as if, upon entering the ship, she had shed her old skin, grown out of it. And now she had a new one, one that was part of the Venture, one that was bound for England.

Evelyn took a deep breath of the cold night air and gazed once more out onto the water. To her right, she could still make out the lights of New York, flickering in the distance, the tall figure of the Empire State Building rising like a beam of light amidst it all. Then, to her left, there was the wide open sea. There was freedom and there was the hope of a better life.

She'd done it, she'd got away.


	3. Three

Three

Evelyn woke up on the first day of work on the SS Venture brimming with excitement. Anyone would think she was mad for being so happy at such a large amount of hard work, but Evelyn didn't mind it. It was true, she had little experience of it, but she was eager to begin nonetheless. The fact that she had done little with her life, that she'd experienced almost nothing in the grand scheme of things, often frustrated and annoyed her and she was keen to remedy that. For once, she would be thankful for having something useful to do, as well, for sitting around looking pretty was not something she deemed helpful to society.

She dressed for the day, pulling on a pair of trousers she'd borrowed from her brother – well, stolen as she wasn't likely to give them back – and tucking in a cotton shirt. It was one of her old school shirts; she'd spent weeks unstitching the sides and adding more material so that it fit her again. Her Mother had caught her doing it once and had given her an approving look, apparently pleased that she was getting on with a suitable pursuit for a young lady. She'd laughed about it afterwards and thought it was very ironic. Though her needlework was good enough, unfortunately the shirt now looked rather mismatched and shabby. Evelyn had been a little worried by this at first, but she definitely needn't have been, for one look at the crew told her that by wearing it she would fit right in. She then pulled on her boots and stepped out of her little cabin.

As she did so, she found that the cabin door opposite her had also opened simultaneously. A sleepy looking Jimmy met her in the hallway. His hair was ruffled slightly and he was rubbing one eye. He straightened up as he saw her.

"Oh, morning," he greeted. "You're up early."

"Got to make a good impression on my first day, am I right?" Evelyn answered briskly. Jimmy said nothing, only nodded slightly in agreement and the awkward silence from the night before fell between them again. "Err, you couldn't show me to the galley, could you? I'm to start work helping the cook apparently, but I can't quite remember how to get there…"

This was a lie. It ship wasn't that big and, although she'd only been there a day or so, Evelyn already knew where all the key places were: the bridge, the galley, the cabins and the cargo hold, for example. But it broke the ice, anyway.

At least, she thought it would. It seemed Jimmy was a man of few words. But he really was an interesting boy. Evelyn could not help but be drawn in by him, which she found strange, as young men usually wooed young women by complimenting and charming them, but Jimmy did neither. In fact, he barely spoke at all. She knew what her Mother would say about him, that he was simple, that the lights were on by nobody was home. But that would be a cruel thing to say. He was just shy, Evelyn could tell. And who knows what he'd experienced in the world to make him like that? She certainly wouldn't judge him for it. And besides, she had a feeling there was more to him. She was sure that there was more going on inside his head than people thought. He really was intriguing. They continued to the galley in silence before Evelyn grew tired of it and piped up again.

"So…how long have you been on the Venture?" she asked.

"'Bout seven years, maybe eight."

Evelyn's eyebrows rose at this. "But you must have been so young."

Jimmy made a soft 'hmm' sound in agreement, but said nothing more on the subject. Evelyn did not push it.

"And what about you? What made you join our crew?" Evelyn was surprised at his attempt at conversation, but pleased nonetheless that he showed an interest, whether it was out of politeness or otherwise.

"Fancied a change," she shrugged. Jimmy looked at her, slightly surprised by the flippancy of her answer. She laughed and threw up her hands. "Why not?"

They continued to the galley without another word spoken between them. Except, this time, the quietness between them was pleasant, not awkward as before. Jimmy hummed under his breath as they walked out in the clear sea air and Evelyn felt rather content. Not to mention pleased that she had found at least one person aboard the ship that she could be friends with. She was to be there for a while and did not intend to keep to herself.

When they reached the galley, Jimmy quickly wolfed down his breakfast, made his goodbyes and hurried away to find Hayes, leaving Evelyn alone with the cook. She eyed him from across the room, cooking something unidentifiable from the kitchen. She decided it would be better to be upfront about things, than to shrink like violet into the background. She wanted to make a good impression more than anything, she was desperate to show that she could be useful around the ship. And in fact, she was rather happy that the Captain had assigned her to the ship's cook – better to start with something easy. So she took the plunge and walked over to introduce herself.

"Katherine Winters, at your service, sir," she said brightly, giving a mock salute. The man looked up, frowning at her slightly, before his face relaxed and he gave a chuckle.

"Lumpy, young miss," he replied, saluting back. "Ship's cook."

"So I see," Evelyn said, rather impertinently. Lumpy eyed her suspiciously.

"Cheeky one, you are," he said, laughing again. "I like ya already!"

"Same to you, sir." She grinned.

"Now, let me give you the grand tour…"

* * *

><p>Evelyn's first day under the watch of Lumpy was everything she'd hoped it would be, if more than a little tiring. Firstly, he had shown her where everything was. Not that it was particularly organised. Most things didn't exactly have a particular home, except for the food that stayed in the larder, everything just sort of sat where ever it was placed after being used and was put away if they needed to clear some space. But Evelyn had to admit, Lumpy could manage the kitchen well enough. It was organised chaos, she supposed. And it was clean, that was all that mattered to her.<p>

Next, upon finding out that she had never, _ever_ cooked before, he had sighed and taught her the basics. It was easy enough, learning how to chop vegetables properly and what flavours went with what. Not that they had much variety to work with. She had squealed when he had shown her the sheep's brains and other types of unknown, low cost meat that they had stored away, before point blankly refusing to ever touch them. "I'd rather starve!" were her rough sentiments on the matter. Lumpy had only laughed and told her that she may go back on that yet.

After that, the hard work started. He made her scrub the floor and wash up all the dishes and cutlery from breakfast. Not that she'd minded. Considering what an odd man Lumpy was, Evelyn found him to be wonderful company, always laughing and making jokes. He teased her on the way she spoke and in turn she had made a rather unflattering impression of him. He had only roared with laughter, along with the other crew members present at the time.

Her bright mood spread to everyone who entered the galley that day and by the evening meal it was positively bustling with people, all laughing and talking together. She had not seen the young couple she had met the previous day again, but many of the crew, who had finished for the day, had come to join them for dinner. They all sat cramped in the small galley, piling round the table and, if they could not fit, sitting up on the sideboards to eat.

Evelyn recognised many of the faces in the crowd – Hayes, Jimmy and Choy, for example – but mostly, it was the first time she was to meet the majority of the crew. Most of them weren't particularly interested in her, too wrapped up in their own conversations, but a few were rather talkative and Lumpy made sure that everyone introduced themselves. Again, she felt glad of Lumpy's company; he was familiar with all of the crew and, whether he was consciously doing it, really helped Evelyn to settle in. Finally, she felt like she belonged somewhere.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, back in onshore, Leonard Hartley sighed at his desk. He turned and looked out of the window. The city of New York rising up around him. Not too far away, he could see the Empire State Building, towering above all else. He stopped to appreciate the amazing feat of engineering, before his mind had to return to the matters in hand.<p>

He was annoyed. He had just been in the middle of doing something _extremely _important when his secretary had called through and informed him that a certain Lawrence Hargrove wished to see him. It was just what he needed. Mind you, he did like the man, it was just bad timing.

"Lawrence, my man!" he cried as the man in question entered the room. He rose to greet him, shaking his hand and patting his shoulder simultaneously.

"Mr Hartley," the man said with a nod of his head. Leonard returned to his seat behind his desk and motioned for Lawrence to sit opposite him.

"What can I do for you, son? Did your Father send you?"

"No, actually. I won't keep you for a minute, I promise…I came to speak with you about Evelyn." Leonard could have guessed that. Lawrence could have easily phoned, spoken to his secretary and she'd tell him exactly the same as he was about to tell him, but then again, he was like that, always on the case. "I was wondering if you'd had any news."

Leonard sighed again and rose from his chair. He liked the man alright, but he didn't have time for this.

"Nope, 'fraid not," he answered, casually, his New York accent coming out strong.

"I thought as much. You see, I was wondering if you'd let me get my man on the job."

Leonard turned to face him, intrigued. "Your man?"

"Yeah, names Crowe, Victor Crowe. Ex-army man and the best there is. Just thought seeing as the cops aren't making much progress, we'd better take the matter into our own hands."

"He's not bent is he?" Leonard asked, eyeing the card Lawrence had just handed him suspiciously. Lawrence chuckled.

"Course not. Like I said, best there is. He'll find your daughter in no time and we all know how important that is."

Leonard nodded, thinking the whole thing over. "Very well. Send the bill to me. But I'd appreciate it if I was kept out of it. Things are really kicking off around here at the moment."

"Not a problem, Mr Hartley." Lawrence rose. "Well, I'd best be off. I'll keep you informed."

"Thank you," Leonard replied with a firm nod.

He watched as the young man exited the room, before going back to his work. The meeting had been more useful than he'd expected, at least that was one thing off of his mind. Though why Hargrove should take such an interest in finding the girl, he didn't know.

Of course, they talked about a marriage between the two of them, but Leonard thought the man would have given up on that by now, with the kidnap and everything. He certainly didn't love the girl, surely?

It'd been a natural coupling. Evelyn hadn't liked it, but it had been a good idea for everyone. Lawrence had asked the girl not too long ago and she'd refused outright. But apparently, he was still adamant that they should marry. This was fine with Leonard though, he would gain a lot from it. He supposed that was why he'd allowed Lawrence to take matters into his own hands. She would be found much more quickly if there was someone to chase things along and he himself just didn't have the time.

He had to hand it to him though, Lawrence knew how to get what he wanted. Leonard guessed that was why he was so successful, that coupled with the guidance of his Father. He would go a long way if he stayed like that. Leonard admired him greatly for his ambition, it was one of the reasons why he'd picked him out for his daughter. Grace had been happy with the match too, not that he needed her permission, but still, it was yet another reason why the match should go ahead. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more pleased he became that he'd let the man take charge of things. Then perhaps Evelyn would actually be found and they would be able to marry. He rather liked the idea of him as a son-in-law. It seemed everything was working out rather well.

* * *

><p>A week passed and Evelyn was more than settled in. It had been odd at first, getting used to the new surroundings and to being addressed by a different name, but after seven whole days of Lumpy's constant shouts of "Katherine!", she was soon used to it. Not to mention the fact that he had her running all over the place, she knew the ship top to toe in no time. She supposed it was a good thing, jumping in at the deep end, it made her remember things. It forced her to learn where everything was and exactly what she was meant to be doing. She was a bright girl and picked it all up very quickly.<p>

Aside from the kitchens, she was to assist in whatever needed doing at the time – much like Jimmy. In fact, more often than not, if she wasn't in the galley, then she was off helping him instead.

Her friendship with Jimmy surprised Evelyn. She truly did not think she would be able to form a close friendship with anyone on board – friendships yes, but close friendships? Well, she had little in common with these sea-faring men. Yet, on both accounts, she was wrong. Not only did she find most of the crew more than agreeable and very easy going, but she found that her and Jimmy got on rather well, too.

She'd found it difficult at first. Usually, she couldn't get away from young men, trying to woo her and constantly talking at her like she were a wall or a piece of furniture, but Jimmy was different. As she'd observed before, he didn't talk much, for starters, and when he did, Evelyn found him to be unexpectedly perceptive and curious.

One day, she'd accidentally let it slip that she'd gone to school and after that he'd constantly quiz her on it. He was eager to learn, she could tell. She often thought that they should have traded places – it was Jimmy who should have been given all the opportunities, he deserved them far more. He was inquisitive and enthusiastic about learning new things. She'd been impressed when he'd told her he'd taught himself to read and she often encouraged him to read passages of his book aloud to her when they had a spare moment and they had spent a few evenings reading to each other as well.

She felt strangely comfortable around the boy. She supposed it was because they were of a similar age. But she felt completely different around him compared to how she felt with the others. The Captain she saw rarely and when she did he was stern and said very little to her, Hayes was gentle enough and she could see why Jimmy looked up to him, but they were both rather intimidating to say the least. Lumpy was the complete opposite, of course, she found him to be a very comic character and he kept her more than entertained through out the long days. But, more than anyone, it was Jimmy's company she enjoyed the most.

Then there was the couple she'd met on the first day of the voyage. They were a bizarre pair to say the least, but she found Nancy to be quite good company, when she wanted to be.

She didn't usually see them that often, they ate later than the rest of the crew and kept to their rooms mainly, only coming out for a smoke every now and again. But occasionally Nancy would knock on Evelyn's door and talk with her for a while, probably more for the female company than Evelyn herself, but she didn't mind.

Nancy was a sweet girl, though quite a bit older than Evelyn, she guessed her to be nearly thirty, perhaps. They formed a quick friendship, again probably owing to the fact that they were the two females on board and to Nancy's persistent boredom. She enjoyed trying to dress her up and sometimes Evelyn let her, just to stop her from pestering so continually. They would sit in Evelyn's cabin and Nancy would bring in all her rollers and beauty products and curl her hair. Evelyn had to admit that she rather liked it. She made Nancy do it so that it didn't look too curly and too neat, she thought it silly to walk around the ship in shabby clothes but perfectly styled hair. And she did it wonderfully, with just the right amount of curl.

Even Jimmy had liked it, in fact. Evelyn did not think a boy had ever commented on the way she looked before, not even when she spent hours getting ready and she was wearing her best and most expensive dress. But now that she was wearing her brother's old clothes and no make-up did she receive her first compliment, it was almost laughable. But it happened. His eyes had lingered on her a little longer than usual and he'd reached out and touched the curls softly.

"You look pretty with your hair like that," he'd said. She'd blushed and tried to cover her embarrassment by making a joke. Thank God, no one else had been there to see. After that she'd let Nancy do it more often.

It was a shame Evelyn did not have such enthusiasm for Bobby. She'd only encountered him once or twice, he didn't like roaming the deck much. But she was more than glad of this. She didn't like him much. She often wondered what Nancy ever saw in him, aside from the fact that he was rather good looking, like an actor or something. But it was the way he spoke, like a snake. He always seemed to smirk and leer at her. He would make lewd jokes and tease her, even in front of Nancy, though she seemed unfazed by it. Evelyn imagined that he did it to every girl he'd ever encountered. Usually it wasn't a problem anyway, because she never spoke to him alone. Until one day, when he caught her unawares.

It was the evening and she had stopped to watch the sunset. It was a sight she never grew tired of seeing, especially out at sea. There was nothing to obscure it, you see. She loved the fact that every night it was different. Sometimes there was a red sky, sometimes it was a soft pink, making the clouds look like candyfloss, and sometimes it was purple. Tonight it was orange. The rays of the sun lit up the entire sky and the waves only reflected them back, making it seem like the whole world was on fire. She sighed contentedly and leant forward onto the railings. There was a cool sea breeze in the air that played in her hair and with the loose material of her shirt.

"Pretty sight," she heard all of a sudden. She had not heard him approach but Bobby stood to one side of her, cigarettes in hand.

"It is," she replied, keeping her answer short. She did not wish to get into a conversation with him very much.

"Not with Jimmy tonight?"

She turned to look at him, after he said it, and frowned. Why should he assume she'd be with Jimmy?

"Apparently not," she answered curtly. He took a few steps forward and stood beside her at the railings. Taking out a cigarette, he offered it to her.

"No, thanks. Don't smoke."

"Suit yourself," he responded, putting it in his own mouth and lighting the end. Evelyn watched him take a few drags out of the corner of her eye and wondered what to do. She had to make her excuses right away, she did not want to get sucked in by him, there was just something about him…But before she could get a word out, he beat her to it.

"I think you got one of them faces," he said, taking another drag and facing out to sea.

"What faces?" she asked, puzzled somewhat.

"You know, when you think you recognise someone, but really you've never met them before."

"Oh?" Had he guessed who she was?

"Yeah, 'cause you sure do look familiar."

"Bet you seen a lot of girls in your life, Bobby. Wouldn't be surprised if they all just looked the same to you now."

He chuckled, but it was false. He recovered and sidled in next to her. "You sure I ain't met you before?"

"I don't usually associate with people like you," she said, moving away. She was growing wary now, what if he really did recognise her?

"Is that so?" He took a step closer, smirking. "Used to more…refined company?"

She struggled for something to say, but was luckily saved by the sound of footsteps approaching. Jimmy appeared a second later. At the sight of him, Evelyn leapt into action.

"Jimmy!" she exclaimed. "I was just about to come looking for you."

"Yeah?" he said quietly.

"Yeah…" She grabbed his arm and linked it with her own, guiding him away from Bobby. "Come on, let's go."

She risked a look back, only to wish she hadn't. Bobby still stood there, smirking at her, smoke from his cigarette rising ominously from his mouth. He winked at her, just before he fell out of sight.

He knew, she was sure of it.

* * *

><p>The rest of the evening, Evelyn could not help but feel a tad jittery. She'd been having such a good week helping Lumpy and spending time with Jimmy that she'd almost forgotten about her old life. She almost felt like she was no longer Evelyn, she was Katherine now. It was strange to think back to it all, it felt like a lifetime ago, and she'd grown to be so comfortable on the Venture.<p>

But she had to think practically. Bobby was a creep, he was probably just trying to intimidate her and she was not about to let that happen. She admitted to herself that she probably looked a tad out of place on that ship full of men, but it was not a crazy notion for her to be there, surely it wasn't? It was only because she knew she had a secret that she suspected he knew. He was just trying to wind her up, he had been doing it since the moment he'd met her. He was a low-life, looking for young girls to prey on, just for sport. She tried to put the thought of him out of her mind, not wanting to waste anymore time on the man.

She'd had steered Jimmy back to gallery right away, walking briskly so as to be as far away from Bobby as she could. He'd frowned at her and asked what the matter was.

"Oh, nothing. He's just a creep," she'd said casually, not wanting to draw attention to any of it. "Lumpy will be waiting for us in the galley. We promised him his night off, remember?" She giggled.

The previous evening, Lumpy had been complaining about his bad knee and so Evelyn had promised that she would cook the next evening meal by herself to give him the night off. Despite the fact that she contributed greatly to the preparation of every meal, Evelyn was still rather worried about the extent of her cooking skills, therefore, she'd roped Jimmy in to help. He'd been unsure at first, having had little experience in the kitchen, but after a reassurance that he would only have to chop up a few things and get the plates ready, he had agreed.

They arrived in the galley to find Lumpy still busying himself in the kitchen. At the sight, Evelyn marched over to him, a determined look on her face.

"Right," she said, starting to gather all the appropriate utensils together. "Let's get this dinner cooked. Jimmy, get that saucepan over there. Oh, and the potatoes beside it."

When she had all the ingredients together, she turned to look at Lumpy who still stood a little away from her. She stared at him pointedly.

"What?" he asked, gruffly.

"I must ask that you leave," she replied, as politely as possible.

"Leave?" he repeated.

"A true chef never reveals their secrets, not even to you." Jimmy stifled a laugh at her response. She flashed a smile and giggled. "Sorry, Lumpy! Go and enjoy your evening off."

He didn't reply, only grunted and stalked off. Evelyn did not believe that he even wanted any time off, he was practically married to that kitchen. He had most likely been moaning for the sake of moaning and thought that she would not keep to her word. But Evelyn intended to prove herself that night. She wanted to show herself, show everyone even, that she could do it.

Working with the measly contents of the store cupboard, they managed to pull together some kind of stew. Evelyn could not even quite remember what they'd put in it, a mix of anything and everything decent tasting they could find, she imagined. She'd made Jimmy deal with the meat, she wouldn't even let him tell her what it was he put in it. Ignorance was bliss!

He'd turned out to be a massive help to her, not that she had doubted him before, but he surprised her, as he always did. He was attentive and listened to her every word, doing as she said exactly and they had great fun working together. Jimmy had loosened up somewhat, particularly in the last couple of days; it seemed he was beginning to feel more comfortable around her, too. And Evelyn was glad of it.

As the stew became almost ready, the crew began to gather in the galley, drawn by the smell of it. Evelyn was pleased that at least it _smelled_ nice, that was a good sign of how it might taste.

It seemed everybody was rather excited about how it should turn out. You could tell that not a lot else happened on the ship, if this was their most exciting event. But Evelyn was nonetheless happy that everyone was so enthusiastic about it all.

It was agreed that Lumpy should have the first taste. So, when everyone was settled, Jimmy poured out a bowl and Evelyn set it before him as he sat at the table.

"The moment of truth!" he chuckled, as he picked up his spoon.

"Let's see how good Lumpy's teaching is," another crew member joked. Lumpy narrowed his eyes at him, but joined in with the laughter. Everybody watched in anticipation as he took a spoonful and slowly moved it up to his lips. But he stopped before he reached his mouth and set the spoon down on the bowl again with a clatter, making a little spill on the table.

"I can't eat with you lot all watching me! Feel like I'm on stage or something," he complained.

"Oh, stop moaning, Lumpy, and eat!" Evelyn cried, desperate to know if he approved or not.

"Or we'll make you dance instead," Jimmy added.

Lumpy did as he was told and took a mouthful. Evelyn held her breath and they watched him chew.

"Well?" she prodded.

"'S good," he replied, smiling and nodding, his mouth still full. Everybody let out a hearty cheer at his reaction. Evelyn was over the moon. She jumped up and down, letting out an extremely over the top and girlish squeal. She turned to face Jimmy, pulling him into hug.

"We did it!" she cried as she let go of him.

"Thanks to me," Lumpy interjected.

"What ever do you mean?" she replied with mock indignation.

"Well, I was the one who taught ya it all, wasn't I? Barely knew was a carrot was when you first got here!"

"I'll ignore that," she said, giving him a friendly slap on the shoulder, before turning back to the pot of stew and helping Jimmy to hand it out to the others.

Evelyn could not help but beam at the sight before her – all of them eating together, enjoying the food that she had made. She felt proud of herself for having made something, something useful at that. It was funny that such a small, seemingly insignificant thing could give her such a sense of self-worth. Something that years of learning ballet and French and embroidery and singing and God knows how many other silly pursuits, had never given her.

She felt like the mother of an extremely, and she meant _extremely_, odd family. It was a pleasant feeling. She turned to Jimmy, eating his meal beside her, and smiled. She didn't think she'd ever been this happy before.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you so much for the reviews, its great to get some feedback and to know that people out there are reading this. Let me know what you think of this chapter. I sometimes struggle with the characterisation of Jimmy, he's so quiet and subdued in the film so it makes it difficult to know what he would say day to day about things. I suppose there might be more than one way of portraying him as a result - I see Jimmy as being quiet, but with a lot more going on up there than most people would think, as Evelyn describes. I see him as intelligent, though perhaps not obviously so, in the sense that hes observant and perceptive, he notices the world around him and wants to learn all about it. I suppose that makes him quite childlike, in a sense, but its that innocence that everyone loves about him I guess! Anyway, that explains my characterisation of him in my story, I hope it fits in with the way that most other people see him. But please do let me know if you think he's ever acting OOC, in this or in any future chapters.<strong>

**Oh and to anyone who's added this story to their alert list or favourite story list, you obviously like it and plan to continue following it, so drop me a review to say why :) pretty pleaseee.**

**Thanks,**

**youonlydoll x**


	4. Four

Four

"So, hun, how'd a pretty girl like you end up on this hunk of rust?"

Evelyn laughed as Nancy reached for her rollers. The pair were sitting in Evelyn's cabin, it was mid afternoon and Lumpy had given Evelyn a couple of hours off before the evening meal was to be prepared. As usual, Nancy had insisted she do Evelyn's hair while they had the time spare, despite the fact that they should have been enjoying the good weather outside. However, as there was not much else to do, it hadn't taken much for Evelyn to agree.

"Long story," the young girl replied.

"You say that every time I ask."

"Perhaps I have good reason to," Evelyn returned.

"You can't hide nothing from me, missy. 'S about time you spilled."

"It's really not that interesting…"

"Don't care. Tell me anyway."

Nancy seemed adamant to know and Evelyn was not quite sure how to answer. She didn't exactly want to tell her. Despite the fact that they had become good friends, Nancy did like to gossip a lot. In fact, she made gossip out of anything. It was down to boredom mainly and of course, it was all harmless, but nevertheless, she didn't want to risk her secret getting out just to calm a persistent woman's constant questioning. But at the same time, she was a friend and she hated lying to her. She decided to settle on a middle ground.

"There's really not that much to it. I ran away and that's about all I can say. Didn't much like home, so I left."

"Why didn't you like it?"

Evelyn rolled her eyes, trust Nancy to ask such personal questions and feel no qualms about doing so. "Same old really, Father who was never home, Mother who didn't care much. I'm sure you've heard it all before."

"Mmmhmmm, kid. There's hundreds of girls like you out there. You're not alone, hun." She squeezed Evelyn's shoulder affectionately.

"So what about you? Where are you from?" she said, wanting to change the conversation away from her past.

"Down South, of course. Can't you tell by the accent?" Nancy laughed. "Austin, Texas, to be exact. Not much going on down there anymore though, not since this damn Depression."

"So, is that why you were in New York?"

"Yeah…" she answered unconvincingly.

Nancy shifted uncomfortably in her seat on the bed. Evelyn could tell she had wanted to avoid telling her own story. She didn't say anything for a long moment. Then she put the hairbrush that she was holding down beside her and stood up. Evelyn watched as she sat down in front of her on the floor, crossing her legs to mirror Evelyn's own position.

"Can you keep a secret?"

"Of course." Evelyn nodded. She grew uneasy now. She had just lied, well partly, to her very good friend, who was now willing to trust her with her own secret. She couldn't help but feel guilty.

"You mustn't tell a soul. Promise."

"I do. I won't tell anyone. Doubt anyone on this ship will be much interested in girl's gossip." Evelyn chuckled.

"No," said Nancy, her face serious. "It's more than that."

She chewed her lip nervously. Evelyn was a little worried about what Nancy had to say. She took her hand and gave it a squeeze.

"I promise I won't say a word. You can trust me," she reassured her. And it was true. She had never been one to gossip or betray people's trust, especially not now that she had her own secret. She knew how it would feel should it get out.

"Okay," Nancy said, quietly. "When I lived in Texas, I was married. His name was Ted. I was only young when it happened, 'bout your age, didn't really know what I was doing. Anyway, he didn't turn out to be very nice. Pushed me around a bit, wouldn't let me out the house and all that. But I couldn't leave. By the time I thought about doing it, my parents had died and I had no where else to go."

"Oh, Nancy," Evelyn sighed at the sound of it all, squeezing the older girl's hand harder. It made Evelyn appreciate that she could have been dealt a far worse card in life.

"But then I met Bobby. And he was nothing like Ted was. We had an affair right under Teddy's nose. It took him years to persuade me to leave and the night that we were gonna go, I made Bobby go to the house and get my things. I thought it'd be better if he went, I was so scared of what Ted might do when he found out I was gone. Anyway, they got into a fight, a big one. I don't know what happened exactly, but…" She paused for a moment, on the verge of tears. She took a breath and continued. "He killed him. Bobby killed Ted."

"Oh my goodness," Evelyn gasped.

"Oh, hun, please don't think bad of him! It was self-defence, Ted had gone crazy. Threatened to kill me, to kill both of us. It was the best thing anyone could have done. I know that sounds cruel, I wouldn't wish anyone dead, really I wouldn't. But I was so relieved. That man was pure evil."

"So that's why you moved to New York and why you're going to England?"

"Yeah, we got straight on the train to New York that night. Ran away as far as we could go. That was three years ago now and we hid as long as we could, but I guess things caught up with us. They're looking for us, Katherine, they know it was us – of course they do, they ain't stupid. But I can't let them get Bobby. They wouldn't believe us, they'd say it was murder. He'd get the noose for sure."

She was full on crying now, Evelyn wiped the tears away with a handkerchief she retrieved from her pocket. "It's okay, Nancy. They won't. We're hundreds of miles away from New York now and they have no idea where you went."

"But we can't be sure…"

"I promise you they won't find you. When we get to England, I'll make sure of it. I'll help you find somewhere to stay. I'll do everything I can." Nancy smiled at her in thanks.

"Oh, hun, I know what he did was wrong, but he did it for me, and Ted would have killed him otherwise. And no doubt gone after me, as well. But they won't see it that way, will they?"

"Perhaps not, but the right thing isn't always the best thing, that's for sure," Evelyn contemplated.

"I'm sorry, hun, I shouldn't have put all this on you. I just get so worried and I wanted someone to talk to about it. Bobby doesn't ever wanna talk about it. And I'm stuck on this damn ship with nothing to do."

"Don't be silly, you don't have to apologise for anything. I'll do everything I can to help."

"Oh, you're such a gem, hun. I'm so glad you're here."

Evelyn smiled warmly at her friend and embraced her. But not a word of Nancy's reassurance against Bobby, or any of her own comforting words, could cease the uneasiness in the pit of her stomach.

Evelyn did not quite know how to react to Nancy's new revelation. It was shocking to say the least. She had stayed in Evelyn's cabin for the rest of the afternoon, until Evelyn had to go back to her duties. They didn't speak on the matter for long. Although Nancy seemed pleased to get the weight of her secret off of her chest, she did not seem to wish to dwell on the subject much further. And Evelyn was more than happy with that. Though she wanted to help her new friend as much as possible, she was reluctant to get involved given the seriousness of their situation. Not to mention the fact that she could not help but feel guilty that Nancy had confessed her secret, but Evelyn had not in return told the woman her own.

There was something unsettling about it all. Evelyn was conflicted. On the one hand, she wanted to help her friend as much as possible, but on the other, she could not avoid thinking that there was more to the story than Nancy had told her, or possibly than Nancy even knew.

In fact, the more she thought about it, the more the concept started to develop. At first she had told herself that there couldn't be anything more to it, for why would Nancy lie to her? But simultaneously, she couldn't for the life of her shake the anxious feeling away. That was when it hit her that Nancy might not know everything, that perhaps Bobby had hidden something from her.

It was him that had made her think this, for why else would she doubt Nancy's story? There was something unnerving about him. Evelyn could not quite believe that he would do something so selfless, so dangerous, all in the name of Nancy. It pained her to say it, but was he really the sort of person to do such a thing? A man who preys on other women? Who pleased only himself? It was like a jigsaw puzzle, except all the other pieces fit but him. Evelyn just could not push the image of his sly smirk from her mind. It made her even more wary of him.

But she knew she could not contemplate the subject for long. There was nothing that she could do, really. She had no power now, no money and no connections that might help the pair out. All she could do was make sure Nancy was safe and away from London when they got to England. Besides, she had to think rather selfishly now that she was on her own. If she stayed with them and the police caught up with her, there would be no chance of her beginning a new life, they'd ship her off back home and that would be it. She couldn't risk it.

Evelyn sighed as she slowly stirred the bubbling stew before her. She'd had enough of thinking now, she'd been going over everything that had happened and everything Nancy had said to her over and over again all evening. Now she was tired and rather half-heartedly preparing the evening meal. Lumpy was none too happy at her unenthusiastic attitude.

"Come on, girl!" he called from the other side of the kitchen. "Put some effort into it."

"Sorry, Lumpy," Evelyn replied. "I'm on it, I swear."

"Must be ready now. Get those bowls and start filling 'em."

Evelyn did as she was told, just as the first of the crew members started to fill the galley. She began handing around the bowls of hot stew, still feeling rather morose. It must have shown however, for when Jimmy entered the room he frowned at her.

"What's up with you?" he asked.

"Nothing," Evelyn shrugged in reply. She handed him a bowl. "Here's your food."

"I don't believe you, but alright," he said, giving her a nudge on the shoulder.

She gave him a small smile as if to convince him that she really was fine and they sat down to eat.

The crew were clearly feeling rather raucous tonight; perhaps it was because today had been a little warmer than the days previous and the sun had been out. It was the simple things that made their day a little easier that they treasured. In any case, they were much louder than usual and the jokes were flying all over the place.

They say that misery loves company, but in actual fact, Evelyn's spirits improved the moment she sat down with all the others. She could not help but join in with their banter, their laughter was infectious. Then, after everyone was finished with their meal, they had decided to have a little dance. A few of the crew members played various instruments and apparently it was a regular occurrence on the ship, though Evelyn had yet to experience it.

"Come on, Jimmy, get your dancing shoes and let's go!" one of the crew members shouted.

Evelyn's head whirled round at the sound. "Jimmy, you dance?" she exclaimed incredulously.

He became a tad shy and gave a small nod. Evelyn grew excited. "Really? How wonderful. You know, you surprise me more and more everyday. Now, this I have to see."

She put down the bowls she was holding and made to skip out of the door to follow the others.

"Ah, just you wait a minute, young miss," interrupted Lumpy, blocking her path. "Don't you have something to do?"

"Yes," she answered. "I must go and watch!"

She tried to weave around him but he blocked her again. Jimmy watched from the door, rather amused.

"I don't think so. Not 'til you clean up, miss." He gestured behind her and Evelyn turned to see the state of the galley. It was more than a little messy, to say the least. She pouted and turned to Lumpy.

"Oh, please, can't it wait 'til after? I want to see the dancing." Evelyn was fully aware that she sounded like a ten year old girl, but she didn't care. The thought of missing out on it all was awful.

"No," Lumpy replied, ignoring the puppy dog eyes Evelyn gave him. "Do it now. And stop being such a…_girl_ about it."

He picked up a nearby cloth and threw it into her hands before leaving the galley. She stood open mouthed before looking towards Jimmy. She gave him her best pleading eyes.

"Don't look at me!" he said, shrugging, a smile playing at his lips. "See you when you're done."

"Oh, Jimmy!" she cried, throwing the cloth at his retreating back. "That is _so_ unfair."

This was one thing Evelyn did not like at all. It was like being back at home with everyone telling her what to do and wear and say all the time. Usually she didn't mind Lumpy bossing her around as she quite enjoyed her work in the kitchen, but she hated not being able to do things she wanted. This was precisely why she had left home in the first place. She growled in frustration and began gathering the bowls together. Only a few more weeks and she would be off the ship and could do whatever she wanted. The thought settled her.

After a while of scrubbing away at the dirty bowls and cutlery and just as she was reaching the end, Evelyn heard footsteps in the corridor outside. She smiled.

"Come back to help me, have you, Jim-"

But she stopped. It wasn't Jimmy. It was Bobby. _Fantastic_, Evelyn drawled in her head. She had been hoping to avoid him. Possibly forever.

"Oh, sorry. Thought you were someone else," she backtracked as he entered the room. Against her own wishes, she grew nervous. "Where's Nancy? Doesn't she want dinner?"

She kept her tone light, not wanting to give anything away. She hoped Nancy hadn't told him that she knew about everything, it was the last thing she wished to discuss with him.

"No, she's having an early night," he replied, sitting down at the table. "But you can hit me with some, kitten."

Evelyn made a face at the kitchen wall at the sound of the pet name he had called her. _Kitten?_ She thought. _Really?_ _God, he really is a sleaze. _She poured him out the last of the stew and set it before him on the table.

"Boy, aren't I sick of this," Bobby sighed.

"You don't have to eat it," Evelyn replied sternly. How dare he insult her food?

"Hey, cool it, will you? I didn't mean it like that."

Evelyn began to grow suspicious. He was being too nice. She had expected the opposite. She could not quite work out if this was a good or a bad thing. She ignored his comment, however, deciding she didn't care how he was acting, she didn't want to speak to him either way.

"Listen," he said, rising from the table and making his way over to where she stood at the sink. "I think we got off on the wrong foot. Can we start again?"

She eyed his outstretched hand apprehensively. The memory of her conversation with Nancy flashed across her mind. He had killed someone once. With the hand that he was currently offering to her. Even if it was supposedly by accident or self-defence, or what ever excuse he had given, even if the man deserved it, he still _killed_ someone.

"I'll think about it," she returned, going back to her work.

"I think we'd get on real well…if you'd let us." His tone grew ominous again, there was a slyness about his words, like they had a double meaning. Evelyn did not wish to contemplate what that other meaning might be, she was in no way naïve to the seductions of men. He took a step closer to her. She ignored it and continued drying the newly cleaned bowls.

"Sure, if you say so."

She kept her tone polite but detached and uncaring. She couldn't let him see what she was thinking. To make doubly sure, she did not stop what she was doing. He watched intently as she stacked the bowls and put them away before walking away from him and starting to wipe down the tables. It appeared he wasn't fooled though.

"Don't be like that, dollface."

Evelyn cringed inwardly at the pet name again. He could not be any more infuriating if he tried. She opened her mouth to say something – something that probably would have landed her in rather a lot of trouble, so it was lucky that, at that moment, footsteps could be heard scampering down the hall. Jimmy appeared in the doorway.

"Katherine," he said, breathing heavily and grinning broadly. "You done yet? Lumpy's just started singing!"

It was only then that he realised there was another man in the room. His grin faded somewhat.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, almost accusingly.

"Just having some grub," Bobby answered casually, raising the bowl he held in his hands to prove it. He flashed him a grin. "Ain't she just swell to save me some?"

Jimmy ignored Bobby's comment, which surprised Evelyn. She thought she was the only one who did not like Bobby. The others seemed to get on with him well enough whenever he showed his face up on deck. However, it only served to make her like Jimmy even more, he was clearly a good judge of character, even if he had nothing to base his notions on.

"Katherine?" he asked again, bringing her attention back. She snapped back, right on form again.

"Well…I did have to pick it out of the trash," Evelyn said to Bobby with a false sweetness, giving him a grin in return. "Enjoy!"

At that, she ran out of the room, grabbing Jimmy's hand as she did. She didn't turn back this time. Lord knows, she didn't want to see his face after that. Evelyn knew that she riled him; she could say nothing to his comments, but then again, where was the fun in that? Anyone would have thought she would be more careful considering what she had just found out about the man, but Evelyn could not be bothered with it anymore. What could he do to her on this small ship? At first, she had believed he might know who she was, after their first encounter, but he had not mentioned it since, making her believe that he had been winding her up the whole time. She'd told herself to stop being so paranoid. Besides, the prospect of the evening's entertainment blew all thoughts of Bobby out of her mind.

A giggle escaped her mouth, involuntarily, as they approached the sound of music. Evelyn squeezed Jimmy's hand a little tighter.

"How exciting!" she exclaimed. She felt like a child again, and was no doubt acting like one too, but to Hell with it all, after so many days of hard work and long hours, it was most definitely what she needed.

They rounded the corner to be met by the whole of the crew gathered together on the deck. A few of the members had formed a sort of band to one side, some of which seemed to be playing instruments that looked like they'd made them themselves, Evelyn had no doubts that they had – one of them was definitely playing the washboard she used to do the laundry. She laughed at the sight and at the sound of Lumpy singing loudly amongst them. In all credit to him, he wasn't that bad.

Jimmy jumped in straight away, clearly the best dancer out of them all. He immediately fell into step with the other men dancing, unmistakably a natural. They performed a kind of jig, something Evelyn had never really seen before. It was fast-paced and involved a mix of tap dancing and folksy, jig-like steps. She wondered how they all kept up with it. It was unlike any of the dancing she had ever been taught.

Evelyn sat amongst the crew and watched, tapping her foot in time with the music and thinking that Nancy should be there enjoying it with her. The idea of going to her room and dragging her out of bed to join them flitted across her mind, but then Bobby's face loomed in front of her and she thought twice about it. Besides, Jimmy was beckoning to her excitedly.

"Katherine!" he shouted over the noise of the music and the men's laughter. "Come on! Get up here."

She laughed and shook her head. He gave a look of mock hurt before he was distracted again by the music. Evelyn continued to smile as she watched him. She didn't think she had ever seen him that way before. He was so full of life as he danced; his eyes glittering, reflecting the light of the setting sun, his cheeks slightly flushed as his feet tapped in time on the deck. It was a pleasant sight to see someone so happy.

Evelyn felt a rush of something then. Though she could not put a finger on what it was. She felt a sudden affection for him. But it wasn't one that had come on just at that moment, as she was watching him, it was more like a realisation of a growing fondness. In any case, whatever it was, it gave her a warmth in her chest that she had not experienced before. She decided it was a wonderful feeling.

Then, his eyes were on her again. Her stomach made a little turn at the unexpectedness of it, she also felt a tad embarrassed, as if he had known she was thinking about him. He beckoned once more, but still she refused. She was a competent dancer, alright, but not at dancing like this. Certainly she would embarrass herself by being unable to keep up.

"Katherine!" she heard Jimmy shout again. "Come and dance or I'll make you come and dance."

There was a cheer from the group at his words, but still Evelyn shook her head. A chorus of boos then resounded. Didn't they know that the more they drew attention to her, the less she wanted to dance? She couldn't possibly risk falling flat on her face in front of so many people. Not that she was one to be shy, mind you. In fact, usually she was the opposite, but with all eyes on her and after her previous low mood, for once in her life she felt a little shy.

"There is no way you will!" she called back. Jimmy cocked an eyebrow and gave a cunning smile.

"Wanna bet?" he laughed.

He made towards her, seated at the side of the group, arms outstretched as if to grab her.

"Oh, no you don't!" she cried, predicting his next move. But before she knew it, he had his hands placed firmly on her waist and was lifting her up into the air and putting her over his shoulder. She might have remarked on how easily he had done this, given that he was just a slip of a young man, had her mind not been previously occupied. She did nothing but protest at him. "Put me down! Put me down!"

"If you say so…"

He then, rather unceremoniously, dropped her down onto the deck, in the centre of the circle of men.

"Well, thank you very much!" she growled at him, sarcastically. She allowed him to relax a little, laughing at her response along with the rest of the crew, before pouncing on him. The unexpectedness of it meant that the weight of her bought him straight to the floor with a thump. She stayed on top of him as he lay on his back, straddling his torso and pinning his arms down to the ground, as he groaned in pain beneath her.

"Ha!" she cried, before realising the position she was in and growing a little embarrassed. She didn't think she'd ever done anything so unladylike, her Mother's ways still deeply embedded in her. Quickly, she leapt to her feet, leaving him still lying on the deck. "Now how'd you like it?"

The crew roared with laughter as Evelyn regained her seat at the side. The music, which had died down a little during their little ruckus, started up again in full force and the crew went back to their dancing. Jimmy did not try to get Evelyn to dance again and, though she missed his attention, she did not mind. She was more than happy watching the others and joking with the men sitting either side of her. Even Captain Englehorn and Hayes came to join them later, not that they joined in with the dancing, but it was good to see them there nonetheless. Evelyn did not have much to do with the Captain, but Hayes she spoke to often – him being so close with Jimmy and spending a lot of time with him – and she found him to be fine company.

After a while, the music died down and everybody grew tired. Gradually, the crowd of people began to break up as the crew retired to their cabins for the night. After a short time, only Evelyn and Jimmy were left. When Jimmy had grown tired from all the dancing he and Evelyn had gone and sat together by the edge of the ship. And still they sat there, after everyone else had left, their unbooted feet dangling off the edge, through the bars.

It was a calm night. In front of them, they could only see black. It stretched before them, vast and seemingly infinite, making their ship seem small and insignificant. The only lights that could be seen came from the ship and the full moon that shone clearly above them and the only sounds that could be heard was the gentle puff of steam and the soft parting of the waves as they slowly travelled onward across the ocean. The pair had been sitting in contented silence, until Jimmy cautiously broke it.

"Katherine…" he gently broached.

"Mmm?" she responded absentmindedly.

"I'm not sure I like Nancy and Bobby…" His voice had dropped to a near whisper and his eyes darted briefly about before he said it, clearly worried that they might be overheard.

"Really? Why do you say that?" Evelyn was surprised at his comment. But then, perhaps, at the same time, she shouldn't be. After all, there was the look he had given Bobby in the galley; of course, Evelyn knew better as to Bobby's character but Jimmy seemed to have no reason to dislike him. But now that she thought about it, Jimmy rarely spoke to either of them. Though it could easily be put down to Jimmy's shy nature – it did, after all, take him rather a while to properly warm to Evelyn – after over a week of their company, she would have thought he would have been a tad more relaxed around them. But, then again, it seemed he had his reasons to _not_ feel relaxed.

"I dunno…" he mumbled, unsure of himself now.

_Oh boy, he has no idea_, Evelyn thought. "Nancy seems nice enough," she tried.

Jimmy shrugged. "I guess. There's just something about them…Can't put my finger on what it is…"

He shifted a little, uncomfortable now, and turned to face her a little more. "Be careful around them," he warned. This surprised Evelyn further, she didn't think she'd ever seen Jimmy act so forthright. He was usually so quiet and hesitant of himself.

"Jimmy, you don't have to worry about me," Evelyn chuckled. "I can fend for myself easily enough."

"Big tough girl, huh?" he joked in reply, the serious tone gone from their conversation now.

"'Course," she replied. "Have you seen who I have as a boss? I have to be."

Jimmy laughed in return. Evelyn loved the sound of Jimmy's laughter. She sighed contentedly at her situation, as she felt the cool night breeze tickle her bare feet. She loved evenings like this, chatting with Jimmy and watching the water.

"You really are a wonderful dancer, you know?" she remarked after a moment of silence.

Jimmy blushed slightly and ducked his head before replying. "Thanks. But I would have liked to see you dance."

Evelyn laughed. "I'm not sure about that…"

"I bet you're good." He narrowed his eyes at her in mock suspicion.

"Well, I wouldn't want to disappoint you then."

"Oh, come on, show me," he pushed. "There's no one else here. I promise I won't laugh."

"Why thank you for the vote of confidence!"

"Prove me wrong then. Show me you can do it."

"But I can't dance like you do. All that jigging around, like an Irish dancer or something."

"Well, what kind of dancing _do_ you know? Is it ballet or something?"

Evelyn cringed. She had, in fact, once attempted ballet. She thought she was competent enough at it, but her teacher had thought differently, much to the disappointment of her mother.

"I'm more of a…ballroom kind of girl…" she blurted out.

"Ballroom? Really?" said Jimmy, incredulously.

"It's not that crazy, is it?" she laughed.

"It's just a bit…"

"Posh?" she answered for him. "Not something I should know particularly well, I suppose."

"Nah, I can see it, you dressed up all smart."

Evelyn shook her head. "No, thank you!"

"Come on," Jimmy pestered. "Show me how it's done."

She started at him in disbelief. There was no way she was going to do that. Not in front of Jimmy, the most talented dancer she'd ever met. He far outshone her in that area. She stared blankly at him. "Pardon?"

"You heard me. Show me how it's done," he repeated. "You wouldn't join me earlier, so you have to make up for it now."

He stood and stretched out a hand to her. She looked at it warily, unsure if she wanted to inflict her dancing ability onto the boy. Frowning and growling slightly in annoyance at his persistence, she took his hand and allowed him to pull her up.

"That's better," he smiled; it was returned with a sarcastic grin and a roll of the eyes.

"Very well then. I'll teach you," she sighed. She stood straight before him on the deck. "Now, take my waist."

He gave a small, slightly awkward cough, hesitating for a moment before placing his right hand on the small of her back. Automatically, Evelyn stepped forward, bringing them closer together, so that she looked him directly in the eye, and took his other hand in hers. Her other hand she placed on his shoulder.

"Right," she began, thrown by their proximity, face flushed somewhat. "Well, that's the positioning, anyway…" She was stalling and he knew it.

"And next?" he pressed.

"Um…I can only really remember one dance – the waltz. You probably know it already."

"A little, probably needs a bit of work though."

"Well, it goes something like this," Evelyn began a few basic steps, taking it slowly so he could respond to her movements. "All you need to remember is that posture is everything. And also, communication. We have to work and move together. Otherwise, the dance won't flow properly. At least, that's if I'm quoting my teacher right."

"You had a dancing teacher?" he repeated dubiously.

"Oh…yes…" she stammered, nervous at being caught out slightly. "Just my mother, really."

They continued dancing, Jimmy picking up the steps straight away – the true sign of a good dancer. Evelyn wished she had been that fast in learning it herself, it had taken her many lessons and left her with a rather frustrated tutor, if she remembered correctly. She had, however, come out of it all having nearly mastered the art of ballroom dancing. Well, at least of the waltz, it was after all, the easiest of all the dances. Though she had no interest in learning how to dance, she had been graced with good posture and good enough coordination for her to pick it all up well enough. And her mother had been happy with the results, so she must have been at the very least competent at it.

Evelyn hummed a tune in time with their dancing, wishing that they had music playing in the background. She looked down at their feet, moving rhythmically below them. She was proud of herself for keeping up with the boy. But she had to admit, where as he managed to do it all effortlessly, seemingly without having to think about it, Evelyn, on the other hand, had to keep looking down and constantly focus on what she was doing. She bit her lip in concentration and Jimmy chuckled.

"Thought this was your thing?" he laughed.

"Well, now, I never said that."

"Yes, you did!"

"Alright, don't pick holes. You should know never to listen to me."

"Too late now."

After a moments dancing in silence, perfectly in time with the tune that Evelyn hummed along as an accompaniment, Evelyn looked back up at Jimmy's face. Except, this time he wasn't looking at her with a bemused expression, as before; now he looked at her far more intently. It was as if he were studying her face, watching the tiny movements of her lips and eyes. It was a similar expression to that which she held when she looked at him. She always found him endlessly fascinating and at the present moment, she might have thought that he thought the same of her.

An amused, yet wary, smile graced her lips as a result of a mix of embarrassment and nervousness at the current situation, unsure of how to respond. She had never been this close to a boy before – she had never _let_ a boy be this close to her.

"Everything ok?" she prompted.

"Perfect," he returned, encouraging an even broader smile from Evelyn.

But something had changed between them. Their movements slowed down, until they simply stood before one another, Jimmy's hand still on Evelyn's waist and the other grasping her own. Evelyn was unsure as to who prompted the movement, but before she knew it, their hands were at their sides, fingers interlaced with one another's. She absent-mindedly wondered how and when they had become so close; so close that she could feel his breath, soft on her cheek and cool with the night's air, that she could see the way his blue grey eyes reflected the silver moonlight, like the sea at rest.

Jimmy's head dipped in an action that was so subtle she would have missed it, had she not been paying attention to his every movement. Unconsciously, she mirrored him, so that their lips were level with each other, so that they were almost touching. If they only moved that little bit closer…

The unmistakable click of smart and well-crafted shoes on hard flooring sounded from behind them, breaking them from their reverie. Evelyn was the first to break away, the sound instantly bringing her back to reality. Jimmy reacted more quickly, senses trained from years of relying on them solely for survival, he took a step back, dropping her hand with more care than she expected.

When no one emerged from the shadows, they dropped their guards once more and relaxed. Evelyn anxiously speculated as to who might have seen them, unsure as to how the crew would react to seeing or hearing of what had happened – or to what had been going to happen. But the thought left her mind again, when Jimmy addressed her. And anyway, they had done nothing wrong.

"We'd better get to bed," he said, a tone of resignation in his voice. Evelyn nodded and they turned to find the lower deck. But, not two steps were taken, before she felt a warm hand enveloping her own. She looked down to see Jimmy's hand wrapped tenderly with hers. She gave him a small, contented smile as they walked back to their cabins. She decided she liked the feeling of Jimmy's hand in hers, of him being so close to her. She had never in her life thought she would say something like that, but here she was, saying it! Once, she had vowed never to go near a boy, never to even talk or look at one. She had been very young at the time, but so far, she had pretty much stuck to it. She had never had much interest in young men – in finding a 'suitable suitor' as her Mother said – but this was different. It had nothing to do with marriage or money or anything of the sorts, this was simple. She enjoyed Jimmy's company and wished to have it as much as possible. There wasn't much more to it than that. She wasn't even sure if she would call it love or something even similar. Did it need to be labelled anything?

There was no care as to what it might turn into, where it might lead or what she might get out of it, none of that mattered. What mattered was the present, the moment that they had just shared. And the only thing running through Evelyn's mind was the hope that he might hold her hand more often.


End file.
